When comparing Overcooked vs Torchlight II, the Slant community recommends Overcooked for most people. In the question“What are the best 4-player local multiplayer games on Steam?” Overcooked is ranked 6th while Torchlight II is ranked 9th. The most important reason people chose Overcooked is:
There is a lot of task handoff and delegation so it's not just multiple players doing the same thing, but requires actual strategizing, communication, and cooperation. Working together and communicating with your friends through couch co-op or online play is a constant stream of laughter and excited shouting as you mess up, learn, and hopefully get things done.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Requires close cooperation
There is a lot of task handoff and delegation so it's not just multiple players doing the same thing, but requires actual strategizing, communication, and cooperation. Working together and communicating with your friends through couch co-op or online play is a constant stream of laughter and excited shouting as you mess up, learn, and hopefully get things done.
Pro Lots of scenarios that require different strategies
Some levels in Overcooked are dynamic and greatly adapt the way you have to play in order to successfully complete a level. For example, at one point you and your partner(s) will be split up across multiple moving trucks and it requires quite some strategy to create meals together.
Pro Fast and frantic cooking action
Overcooked is really fast-paced and keeps you on your toes. You play as a chef in a crazy kitchen with a ton of things going on all at once, with you mixing, preparing, and cooking in between the chaos of moving platforms and environmental obstacles. There's a time limit constantly ticking down at the bottom of the screen; finishing your tasks on time or ahead of schedule earns you a better score in the end. It's such a manic yet well-done mix of many different genres and ideas that all come together in the best ways.
Pro Simple to pick up and learn
Overcooked is easy to figure out right from the get-go. The recipes for each dish are familiar even if you're not much of a chef, so you can remember which raw ingredients you need as you make your way around the kitchen and work with your co-op partner(s). Once you play a few rounds, you should have a good handle on things, helping you focus on getting everything done as quickly as possible from there on out.
Pro Play happens on a single screen
Everything in Overcooked happens on a single screen, meaning you won't have to deal with annoying split-screen modes where you view is limited.
Pro Incentive to replay due to limited respec system
Much of leveling up is permanent, which not only gives a sense of connection to ones built characters but also means there is a large incentive to replay to make different builds.
Pro Elaborate loot system
Loot in Torchlight II is varied and dependent on a wide array of circumstances. There are so many variables that come into play as to what a player will find that makes searching out better and better items a game in and of itself.
Pro Varied level design
Unlike the first title there are many areas to see in the game that all have different looks. Plus there are large open ares as well as close quarter caverns.
Pro Works on different OS's: Linux/Mac/Win
Torchlight II is a multi-platform game that works on OSX, Linux and Windows. Which is great for users who dual-boot as the game can be played no matter what OS is booted at the time.
Pro Well implemented and fun action-RPG combat
Torchlight 2 has all the typical RPG mechanics such as classes, loot, skill trees etc. However all the little touches and details come together to make playing the game really fun and a great balance between depth/complexity and being able to get started killing hordes of monsters. Killing monsters is very satisfying and the loot system keeps things very interesting without feeling like you're just grinding for better items.
Pro Well implemented co-op
You can team up with up to 5 other plays to take on the hordes together. There is also a PvP mode if you'd rather kill your friends instead of team up with them.
Cons
Con No online multiplayer
Local multiplayer only. Can't play with friends online.
Con Can be incredibly frustrating
Trying to work at such a fast pace with so much mayhem going on at once can wear on you after a while. There's a lot to keep track of at once, and it's easy for things to spiral out of control as your mistakes pile up. If your group isn't doing well and you're running out of time, you might find yourself losing your patience with your team and yelling at them. This might not be the game for you if you don't have a team that's willing to be patient and cooperative with each other, even when you're not doing so well during a particular round.
Con Laggy game
Some situations make the game very laggy, especially if more players are in the same situation. Like if some food is on fire it is almost unplayable. Still worth it though, if you can play it with friends.
Con Lacking in story
The characters are flat and the overall story is pretty boring/standard. While not unexpected for such a game it would have been nice to have something other than loot driving advancement in the game.
Con Limited respec system
Much like an old school dungeon crawler, there is little to no useful respec system here. You can respec the last three skill points used on a character, but that is it. This tends to lead towards plenty of skills in the skilltree that ended up going nowhere, which are just wasted points. Unless you know specifically where you will be putting each and every skill point for your build beforehand, no respec may have an impact on making a perfect build.